Breaking The Lion's Heart
by NickyLee308
Summary: Minerva's thoughts as she mourns the losses during the break in fighting.


A/N: This little piece came to me as I was watching the last movie yesterday. It's a bit of a combination between the movie and the book. It's just what I imagined going through her head during the break in fighting. I hope you enjoy it and you think I got her personality right.

PS – This has not been proof-read so I apologize for any spelling and grammatical errors.

**Breaking of a Lion's Heart**

The Great Hall was in a state that she had never wanted to see. So many of her students were gone. Her own house had taken the hardest hit. It shouldn't have surprised her, they were the bravest and most daring of all the houses, but it didn't make it any less heart breaking for her. As she walked along the hall making mental notes of where everyone was placed, she felt the depression squeeze harder and harder on her heart.

Colin Creevey, he shouldn't have even been allowed to fight. He was such a bright boy. Always optimistic and always full of life. He hero worshiped Harry, but she didn't think Harry privately minded; he just hated being in the spot light.

She walked a little further to see her old student and ex colleague laying next to his wife. They had just had a baby. Teddy, if she was remembering correctly. Harry's last link to his father was gone. Remus had been such a good role model for the boy. Tears welled up in her eyes as she thought of the pain this was going to cause both Teddy and Harry. Harry would feel the pain now, Teddy was blessed of not understanding at the moment. It would be years before Teddy would find out what happened to his parents, but she vowed to help him understand and to help Harry teach the little baby about his father. He was, after all, one of her favorite students. He and the Marauders (minus Pettigrew, she no longer counted him) may have given her many headaches during their time at Hogwarts, but they also gave her many laughs. And she couldn't be prouder of them.

What she saw next completely broke her, though. Fred Weasley was laying on the ground with his entire family surrounding him. Her heart warmed a little to see Percy among the family, she knew how hard that had been for Molly, but she also knew how tragic of a blow this would be for all of them. Percy's first allegiance to the ministry would be forgotten in light of Fred's death. She looked over at George, not surprised at all to see him sitting next to Fred in shock instead of tears. They were so talented and bright. Hopefully one of the brothers, or Ginny, though she hoped she would come back to Hogwarts next year, would be able to help George get back on his feet. As she looked at the family, it occurred to her that Ron, Hermione and Harry weren't there with them. Dread filled her body and she struggled to fight the feeling off. She couldn't think of that right now. Those three were their biggest hope of winning this war so she had to keep busy and do something else.

She looked around the hall, looking for Poppy. She would help with the injured to keep her mind off those they had lost. She found her kneeling over Lavender Brown trying to mend her deep wounds. As she started making her way toward the pair, a trio standing in the entrance made her stop. Few people saw them, as most were taking care of the injured or dead. She watched as they looked around the hall, trying to find people they knew. She saw the pain flash on Ron's face as he saw his family in tears came to the realization that they had lost someone. She saw Hermione grab his hand in comfort as she came to the same conclusion only seconds after him. She watched as the pair walked quickly toward the family, melting into their embraces.

She turned to watch Harry. He was slowly making his way up the pathway between the dead and injured, looking unsure if he was supposed to be with the Weasley family. She knew that look on his face, the many times she had seen it. He was blaming himself. It wasn't his fault though, everyone knew it. She could see the wheels turning in his head as he stopped halfway between the Weasleys and the doors. He started looking down the row of the dead and he stopped at Remus and Tonks. She saw the pain flash across his face and could practically hear his thoughts. "They didn't deserve this. Teddy is now an orphan, just like me."

He needed comfort. Molly wasn't going to be able to comfort him right now. She had too much grief of her own to handle. Hermione was clearly needed by Ron, and she was pretty sure Harry wouldn't accept her help right now anyway. Ginny was currently out of the picture, though she knew the girl would help him if he asked. Though she would never tell the boys, of all the Weasleys, Ginny was the strongest. Being possessed by Voldemort was proof of that. Remus and Dumbledore were two of the last people to comfort the boy, and now they were gone. That meant it was up to her to try and help her Lion.

Just as she started to make her way toward Harry, he turned and fled from the hall. She was about to run and call out his name when one of her other students called out her name.

"Professor, we've only got 45 minutes before we start fighting again. We need more help bringing bodies in from the grounds."

She turned to look at Neville Longbottom. He was badly wounded, though which wounds were from the Carrows and which were from fighting was unclear. And again, she felt her heart breaking. She was unable to protect all of these students. She had failed them during the school year and she had failed them tonight. Her protection of the castle hadn't been strong enough. She should have had a better evacuation plan. She should have forced the students into hiding before this fight even came.

But she couldn't let these thoughts bring her down. They were going to be fighting again soon, and she needed to be strong for her students. She needed to be their role model. She needed to make sure those who had already died didn'it die in vain. They were going to win this war. So she squared her shoulders, nodded at Neville, and marched onto the grounds to help bring the injured and dead into the hall. She would show everyone what it meant to be a Gryffindor, even if it meant death, because some things were worth dying for.


End file.
